Filipinos and other foreign workers in the United Arab Emirates stand to benefit from a decision of the Ministry of Human Resources granting them free accommodation courtesy of their employers.
The ministry on Monday said that workers who earn less than AED2,000 would get free accommodation by their employers who employ more than 50 workers.
An English daily devoted its editorial for breaking the news to thousands of workers in the Emirates, many of whom are Filipinos.
“This is a welcome change and one that will have a measurable impact on the quality of life and take-home pay of thousands of workers,” said the editorial.
The editorial said it highlights the continued evolution of the labor market in which thousands are also receiving less than 2,000 dirhams.
The new decree, according to the Ministry of Human Resources of Emirates, will come into force in December.
The Abu Dhabi-based newspaper, The National, went on to explain, “With the decree due to come into effect at the end of this year, the task now must be to create a monitoring framework to ensure that both the spirit and the letter of the law are obeyed.”
Monitoring the situation is necessary, according to reports, as companies would try to avoid the implementation of the new decree.
One trick that employers would do to be free from the new decree, according to online reports, is to increase the prevailing AED2,000 limit by a little.
Companies may also split their current 50 employees or more into two, to make it appear they have less than 50 employees.
The editorial pointed out that any inspections will need to be rigorous and ensure that the accommodation is up to a certain standard.
“Housing for laborers is generally a good thing, saving them the costs of the general housing market, but it must be of an acceptable standard,” said the editorial.
The new decree makes it clear that companies with fewer than 50 employees, but in which the workers earn more than AED2,000, can optionally provide accommodation, and if they do, these facilities will also be subject to regular inspections.
“We also hope that this housing is a reasonable distance from the place of work and that, crucially, the time it takes for laborers to be brought in on buses is counted as part of their working day.”
Stories of workers travelling more than an hour each way, without pay, have been reported and this is a gross infringement of these workers’ rights to time off.”